


Right in Front of Ya

by LuckyDuck49



Category: Gilmore Girls
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Fluff, Luke Dreams, Luke/Lorelai - Freeform, Misunderstandings
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-06
Updated: 2020-08-18
Packaged: 2021-03-06 06:49:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 12,605
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25749172
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LuckyDuck49/pseuds/LuckyDuck49
Summary: Lorelai starts to come to terms with her feelings for a certain diner owner (set around season 2). POV switches between Luke and Lorelai every few chapters, third person narrative. Lots of fun and fluff :)
Relationships: Luke Danes/Lorelai Gilmore
Comments: 1
Kudos: 34





	1. Too Early of a Morning

**Author's Note:**

> Hey y’all! This is a work in progress, but I’ll be posting consistently, don’t worry! A new day, a new chapter! Hope y’all enjoy, leave a little love if you do :)

Lorelai woke up to the feeling of falling. Out of control, out of time, falling. Her stomach pitched forward and she sat bolt upright in her bed. She looked at the clock, and smothered a groan. 5:24am. _Perfect_. 

She lay there for a while, contemplating her dream. 

In it, she had been running late for something. _A date, maybe. Or work?_ She couldn’t really remember. Lorelai had been rushing through the house, searching frantically for her keys. She had been yelling for Rory to help her when she entered the kitchen and found the entire town seated at her dining table, all dressed in black. Well, not really the WHOLE town, but enough to rethink the authenticity of the dream.

Babette had been there, seated next to Morey. Miss Patty lounged by the toaster, Kirk seated on the counter, and Taylor hovering by the back door. There were others there too (Andrew, Ms. Kim, Gypsy, and Sookie, to name a few), and every person in the room was dressed for a funeral, all in black. All their heads tilted down to the floor (which seemed, for some reason or another, was covered with old-fashioned movie posters depicting Lorelai’s face giving the camera a dramatic side eye), and wouldn’t look up at her when Lorelai called their names. 

She was about to give up, so frustrated that she could cry, when she turned around and found Luke, wearing his normal flannel and army jacket, looking right at her with a half-smile.

He pressed her car keys into her hands and chuckled. “You really should take a second and realize if somethin’s right in front of ya,” Luke gruffly scolded, a teasing smile in his blue eyes.

Lorelai had been about to shriek and thank him profusely, because _oh my GOD had she been stressed_ , when he abruptly leaned forward and kissed her forehead. 

“You need to go,” he said, moving out of her way, “And for Pete’s sake, don’t just stand there! You don’t wanna be late.”

With that, her dream had dissolved around her, and she was left with nothing but sweaty palms and a heightened sense of awareness at 5:24 in the morning. 

Lorelai groaned again, this time louder, and swung her legs out of bed. She could feel in her bones that she wouldn’t be able to go back to sleep anytime soon, so she might as well carpe diem!

She pulled herself out of bed and shook out her fingers, jumping a little at the unexpectedly frigid room that welcomed her. The chilled morning was a reminder that autumn was right around the corner.

Pulling on some real clothes (a cute, rust-colored turtleneck she had stolen from Rory’s cloet and some jeans), Lorelai creeped down the stairs, wincing at every creaky step. She knew that if she was too loud, she would wake up her daughter and, after pilfering her cutest turtleneck, she was already treading on thin ice.

Rory had been having sleeping troubles lately anyway. Tossing and turning, staying up late and looking like a discount Halloween decoration-type zombie when she woke up. This had been going on for a while now, and Lorelai half-suspected it had something to do with Luke’s nephew spending a little more time with the girl than Dean would probably be comfortable with. But that, as hard as it was for her to say, was none of Lorelai’s business.

Regardless, she tried to be extra sneaky as she wandered to the kitchen. No matter the time, no matter the place, no matter the hour, no matter the space, a Gilmore needs coffee, if she wants to go someplace. _Huh. Rhyming_. Yet another aspect of early-morning-Lorelai that was waiting to be explored. 

She hummed a made-up tune and tried to think of more lyrics as she rummaged blindly around the kitchen, searching for coffee. She came up empty.

With a degree of panic, Lorelai fumbled more hastily for the elixir of life. Or, her life, at least. She needed the coffee, she needed it _NOW._

Then, with the third groan of the morning, she remembered that the last of the coffee had been spent of a last-minute fix the previous afternoon, after Michel had given her a particularly hard time at the front desk (usually she welcomed this, as it was hysterical to see the Frenchman’s face screw up like a lemon, but yesterday she just hadn’t been in the mood).  
Well, that certainly made her morning. And not in a good way, either. 

_LUKE’S!_ she thought with a jolt of happiness, _he opens this early, I think!_

 _And, even if he doesn’t,_ she added with a heartwarming smile, _he’ll probably let me in anyway. He’s that good of a friend._

Her mind drifted back momentarily to her dream, lingering on the moment where she had seen him and felt.. so… relieved. Happy. Like since he was there, everything would end up okay after all. _Luke really was a regular Lancelot_ , she thought with another smile. 

She chose to skirt over the part of her dream that had his lips pressed against her forehead, tender and sweet against her skin. 

Lorelai just... didn’t think of him that way. Sure, he was handsome (there probably wasn’t a red-blooded woman in Stars Hollow that didn’t think so), but he just— he was her friend. HE saw her as a friend, and Lorelai didn’t want to make things weird.

 _So things weren’t weird!_ Good, that’s good. Lorelai rubbed her eyes and mussed up her hair. She was too tired to be thinking like this. Thinking about.. to be thinking like this. She needed coffee.

 _And,_ she thought, bounding to the door, _to get coffee I have to go to Luke’s!_

She scribbled a quick note to Rory and pulled on her shoes. As a second thought, Lorelai grabbed a coat before heading out. It was still dark outside, but she could find her way easily. 

As she walked, Lorelai tried to rid herself of all thoughts. She just focused on the clear, indigo sky, and stuffed her frigid hands farther into her pockets. 

Soon she arrived to find her Lancelot, clad in his armor of flannel and unreadable yet adorably grumpy-looking expression, already waiting for her.


	2. The Catalyst of Dawn

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke gets up, struggling to purge his mind of thoughts, and opens early for her. They watch the sunrise together.

Luke Danes woke up that morning feeling like complete and total shit. His arms and legs ached and felt about 20x heavier than they actually were. His head pounded and it took far too much effort to move. 

He closed his eyes and tried to remember his dream. It eluded him. Something about drowning, something about a colorless world, and something about Lorelai smiling at him, wrapping her arms around his neck and breathing soft words into his skin. Luke purposefully pushed that thought out of his head. 

_ She was just a friend. Just a good friend. Just a very good, very attractive, perfect in every way and the only person who made him feel alive, friend. Yup. So basically just a friend.  _

His alarm was going off. A series of monotone beeps and flashing red lights that were drilling a hole through his groggy mind. With an immense effort, Luke smacked it into off mode, and rested his hand on his chest, feeling his breath rise and fall in his rib cage. 

He had to get up. He didn’t want to get up. Every day was a struggle, it seemed. He would get up, open the diner, work all day, close the diner, and go back to sleep. _Whoopdedoo_. 

There were few parts that he actually enjoyed, and the one thing he did enjoy doing made him feel guilty about enjoying. Especially since the part that he enjoyed was a living, breathing person, who probably had far more important things to think about then the crotchety diner-owner who would secretly steal glances at them as they sipped their coffee every morning. 

He chuckled humorlessly at how pathetic he was.

Then he rolled out of bed and started getting ready for yet another day.

Luke pulled off his night clothes, took a quick shower, and got dressed in his usual flannel shirt and jeans. He washed his face and spent a good 30 seconds just staring at his reflection in the mirror. 

He looked tired. Really, really tired. Lorelai was probably going to make some comment about it. Luke wasn’t sure if he was looking forward to it or dreading it. You never knew with Lorelai Gilmore. 

Luke sighed, turned off the lights, and walked out of the bathroom. He briefly considered waking up Jess, but decided against it. The kid had just gotten to town maybe three weeks ago, and he still wasn’t used to his uncle’s early morning routine. So today, Luke decided to take pity on him and allow the kid a few extra hours.

He made his way out of the apartment and started prepping the diner for opening time. He wiped off the counters and flipped over the chairs. He tried to start a pot of coffee and tried to stop thinking about the woman he was making it for.

_GOD, why did his thoughts keep circling back to her today? I mean, they always did eventually, but even for him, this was pathetic._ Luke rubbed his face. He needed to move on. He needed to stop obsessing over her. But it was so damn hard to stop thinking about her, when it felt like she was the only thing worth thinking about, sometimes.

To get his mind off her, Luke leaned against the counter and focused on the dark purplish blue sky spread out before him. It was peaceful, this time of day. He utterly revealed in the majesty of the morning. Then his eye snagged on a figure walking down the street towards him. 

_Damn it, damn it all to hell. So much for keeping his mind off her._ Luke stormed outside and waited on the steps, arms crossed, as Lorelai made her way to him. 

“Hellooo Lukey!” She chirped with an award-winning smile.

“What’re you doing? The sun’s not even up yet.” 

“Well yeah, I know THAT,” she said, brushing past him with an easy smile, her hand patting his shoulder, “I just couldn’t sleep.”

Luke ignored how his shoulder tingled at her touch, mentally stomping out butterflies that threatened to erupt in his stomach. He followed her into the diner with a noncommittal grunt.

“How’d you sleep, Luke? Any dreams?” Lorelai asked, going behind the counter and pouring herself a cup of coffee.

He rubbed the back of his neck as he considered the question. “Nah,” he said finally. “Why do you ask?”

“Oh, no reason,” she said unconvincingly. 

She sipped her coffee and he gave her a look. “You’re not supposed to go behind the counter you know,” he growled unconvincingly, no real fire in his words.

“Mhm, right.”

He went behind the counter and started wiping it down again. Luke didn’t feel like being the one to carry the conversation today (or ever). Thankfully, Lorelai, as always, kept talking.

“Well, uh, the reason that I asked that is ‘cause, um, you were in my dream last night.”

Luke stopped wiping for a millisecond before continuing at a faster rate, the flutter of hope in his stomach making him restless.

“Yeah?” He asked after a second, “What was the dream?”

She grinned at him. “Oh, the usual. Terrifying stress dream of unknown causes. I was late for something, and couldn’t find my keys. Almost the WHOLE TOWN was in my house, but none of them would help, or even look at me! Seriously, I was so stressed.”

Luke stopped wiping for good and just listened, watching her recount her dream. 

“Then you showed up.” Luke thought he caught the glimmer of a smile when she said this. “You looked me in the eyes and handed me my keys, and told me I should get going.”

Luke cleared his throat. “Anything else happen?” He asked, hopeful and hating himself for it.

Lorelai looked up at him, then away again. “Uh, well, you um.. no, nothing else. I just woke up.” 

It may have been his imagination, but Luke thought he saw the faint trace of blush starting to creep up Lorelai’s sculpted cheeks. Then it was gone, as she turned to the windows and stifled a gasp. She ran up to them and bounced on her heels, smiling like crazy.

“LUKE! Look at that!” She squealed, pointing at the horizon.

“What? Oh, that’s just the sunrise,” he said, walking over to join her.

The sun was beginning to peek up above the treeline. The indigo of night was fading back, wearing with bright orange streaks brought on by the rising sun. The sky began to dilute into a bright blue compromise between the two raging colors. A few fluffy clouds skirted the edges, blushing an angelic shade of rose. 

Luke allowed himself a small smile. He was almost grateful at Lorelai for coming in. Luke wouldn’t even have noticed it if not for her outburst.

“Oh.. it’s beautiful,” she murmured, her face reflecting all the colors of the sunrise back onto the window’s reflection. Her lips curled up at the edges, crinkling those stunning blue eyes around the edges. 

“Yeah,” Luke echoed thickly, “beautiful.” She didn’t even notice that he wasn’t looking at the sunrise. 

They sat in silence then, both quietly content in their own way, each basking the glow of the oncoming day.


	3. So Damn Happy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Part 2 of the diner that morning. She extends a movie-night invite (hey that rhymes!) Lorelai feels a little bit flustered and little bit giddy, Luke feels a little bit exasperated and a little bit happier than he did before. All fluff. Pure fluff. Drowning in fluff.

Lorelai turned her face slightly away from the gorgeous sunrise, finding Luke’s eyes on her, standing remarkably closer than he had been, not 20 seconds ago. She felt all the air leave her lungs as his smoky blue eyes locked with hers. 

She felt her heart beating a little faster, her pulse echoing in her eardrums, beating out the tune of the mild panic that was beginning to set in. He didn’t look away. His eyes dipped momentarily downwards as Lorelai licked her lips, suddenly very conscious of how dry her mouth was.

For a half second, it seemed like Luke was about to kiss her. For a half second, Lorelai almost wanted him to. She thought he might have leaned forward. Then she ruined it.

“Have you ever read The Little Prince?”

He imperceptibly pulled back a millimeter or two, the swift motion so subtle that Lorelai wasn’t sure if he had actually gotten closer to her or not. 

“What?” He asked, brow furrowed. “Is that.. What?”

 _Aaaaand the moment was gone_. Lorelai almost breathed an audible sigh of relief. For a minute there it almost seemed like Luke had turned into some.. some Rande Gerber-level of hotness, and Lorelai didn’t.. she didn’t want… she wasn’t sure what she wanted. All she knew is that she panicked and now he was back to being the grumpy diner-friend who was waiting for an explanation.

“Oh, um, well,” she said, stumbling over her words, “It’s a book that Rory read a little while ago, and there were some parts that, uh, she thought I would like, so she bookmarked them for me.”

Luke was still looking at her, his face still a little too close to hers. The creases between his eyebrows were multiplying. Lorelai kept babbling.

“Well, anyway, the plot is about this little boy who lived on an asteroid, and how he meets up with this pilot who crash-landed in the Sahara, but anyway the part I liked was when it described the kid’s asteroid. The thing was so small that every 10 minutes or something crazy like that, he could see the sunrise. He would watch it with his best friend, who was, uh, a rose, and would just be so happy. Just watching the sunrise over and over again.”

Luke nodded with his eyes confused and wide, his brow still furrowed, as if saying, ‘okay, I have no idea what to say to that/wow you’re crazy’. What he actually said was, “Huh.”

Lorelai caught a flicker of something in his stormy blue eyes as he glanced down, the light in them fading slightly. 

“Hey, are you okay?” She asked, putting her hand on his shoulder, forgetting in her concern that she was trying to put distance between them.

He shrugged her off. “I’m fine.”

“No you’re not.”

“No, I’m not,” he sighed, turning away. “I’m— I’m just tired.”

Lorelai could feel he was lying, but she let it slide. She saw plainly the circles under his eyes, the defeated look in his slumped posture as he walked behind the counter again. He was tired, but she suspected there was something else going on. Lorelai took a stab at interpretation and came up with loneliness. She could relate. 

Lorelai wished she could make him feel better. For a reason she couldn’t comprehend quite yet, seeing him look so exhausted and melancholy hurt her heart, the aching pain flourishing in her chest. She smiled despite this, hoping to distract him and make him feel a little better, maybe.

“ _Heeeeeeey_ , _Luke?_ ” She asked, leaning dangerously far back in her chair.

“Yeah?” The deep voice answered from somewhere behind her.

“Since, uh… well, I couldn’t help but notice that bags under your eyes could barely fit in an overhead bin, and well.. what would you say about joining Rory and I for movie night at the Crap Shack tonight? It’ll be relaxing, just a movie with pals! What’dya say, ol’ boy?!”

Lorelai could practically HEAR him folding him arms across his chest and rolling his eyes up to the ceiling. She did actually hear him puff out a breath of air before responding. 

“Yeah, okay. Not like I have anything else to do.”

Lorelai ignored the faint urge to make a joke about how offended she could have been at that remark, but she held back. Instead she leaned even farther back in her seat and gave him a shiny, upside-down smile, her hair falling down past her head.

“So you’re coming?!” She asked excitedly.

“Oh I’m definitely coming,” he answered. From her upside-down vantage point she saw him cringe as he realized the double-meaning.

“Why my dear Luke,” Lorelai said, without missing a beat, “I do believe you’ve earned yourself a _DIRTY!_ ”

“ _Oh goody,_ ” he deadpanned in a high-pitched voice, pretending to be unamused. Despite his best efforts, Lorelai caught the corners of his scowl twitch towards a grin. 

She beamed up at his, leaning so far back her feet barely touched the ground. 

Suddenly, her chair tipped backward and she lost her balance. Suddenly, her hands snapped in the air as she tried to grab onto something, a strangled yelp escaping from her lips. Suddenly, Luke was there, catching her a millisecond before she hit the ground. Suddenly, his arms were wrapped around her, his knees bent and braced under her chair. Suddenly Lorelai could feel his warm breath on her cheek, his face dangerously close to hers.

His face, for a second, was slack with pure shock, mirroring her own wide eyes and parted lips. Then Luke’s expression was taken over by a scowl of gritted teeth, his blue eyes aflame with fury born of fear.

“What were you thinking?!” He nearly shouted, “You could’ve gotten hurt.”

Lorelai didn’t say anything. She just watched him silently, her brain taking a moment to process the sudden influx of adrenaline causing her hands to shake on the armrests, restrained by Luke’s forearms covering her own. Her wide eyes took in his seething expression, and her mouth moved without sound, struggling to find words.

Slowly, Luke seemed to become aware of their closeness, how his hands gripped around her torso, his arms, in their haste, pushed up against the swell of her breast. His anger seemed to dissipate, though his face flushed an even deeper shade of red.

“Uh, sorry,” he muttered, releasing her and gently setting the chair back down.

Lorelai regained control of her voice. “No no, no! You don’t have anything to be sorry about!” She said as quickly and sincerely as she could manage.

“You saved me from my own daredevil/ride-the-fire/Look-Mom-No-Hands stupidity! You, my friend,” she said with a cheeky smile, “are my hero. You should get a medal.”

Luke grunted and turned away. She thought she caught the flicker of a smile before she did. 

“Ai ai ai,” he grumbled as he walked away, “you are a lot of work.”

“Oh hush,” she said, sticking out her tongue, “you know you love me!”

She realized what she said when Luke glanced at her and didn’t glance away again. Lorelai could feel her face heating up. Before the brief silence could get too awkward, she hurriedly changed the subject.

“So, uh, 7:30 tonight?”

He blinked, and as if rebooting, nodded his head and shook it a little at the same time. “Huh? Uh, yeah, yeah. I’ll, uh, be there.”

“Good!” Lorelai said, gulping down the last of her coffee and backtracking toward the door, “Attendance is mandatory! Ghost us at your own risk! 7:30 sharp, be there or be square, my flannel friend!”

“What have I gotten myself into,” Luke muttered, rolling his eyes.

Before she closed the door behind her, Lorelai saw, definitively, that Luke was smiling. 

She grinned as she walked away, and tried to count the hours in her head, the hours until the movie that night. God, gone for two seconds and she was already thinking about him. Lorelai might’ve been embarrassed at herself, had she not been just so damn happy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahaha this was such a fluffy chapter, so fun to write!! Hope y’all enjoyed it as much as I did :)


	4. Invasion of the Unwanted Thoughts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke can’t stop thinking about that morning, wondering what might have been. He gives up giving up thinking about her and just embraces the fact that Lorelai will always be on his mind, even if he’s not too happy about that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey y’all! This chapter is where it gets an itty-bitty-bit into the rating, so you have been warned. There is also some sweet moments, but its all internal Luke. Let me know what y’all think!

Luke found himself in a rather emotionless mood the rest of the morning. Really the only thing he felt was shell-shocked, and even that faded into static at the back of his mind for most of it. He kept spacing out in the middle of mundane tasks, lost in the memories of the morning.

Luke was counting out change for a customer when he was bombarded with the memory of Lorelai watching him intently right after she pointed out the sunrise. _So, so intently._ Like she could see right through the mask he put on for others and into his heart, seeking out the depths of his discomfort and purging his soul of insecurities. Or like she was about to make out with him. Either one.

Honestly Luke was more comfortable thinking about the first option. He could save the second for when he was alone, preferably at night. _Preferably for hours at a time_. He was willing to bet she could keep up.

_Aaaand_ he had dropped all the coins on the floor, and the customer was now impatiently tapping their foot as Luke scrambled to pick them up, his face burning a bright red at how he got carried away with his thoughts. No tip and he didn’t even notice.

It happened again, worse this time, after he let Caesar take over when he realized he wasn’t up to talking with people that day. He was washing the dishes with great concentration. As Luke rinsed the sponge and felt the warm water over his hands, he was instantly lost in another memory of that morning. 

When her chair had tipped over, and he had rushed to grab her before she fell and got herself hurt. Luke had wrapped his arms around her and held her there, legs bent under her, keeping the chair upright with the force of his body. Her face had been mere _centimeters_ from his.

He had, at first, been angry with Lorelai. She could have gotten hurt! But then, when she hadn’t responded, Luke had suddenly become very aware that his arms, in their haste, were wrapped around her chest. Luke could feel the softness under his hands, feel the warmth radiating off her. It was intoxicating.

He wondered what she might’ve done if he had kissed her then. Maybe she wouldn’t yell at him for being the creep he knew he was being, wouldn’t push him away, disgusted that he would pull a stunt like that. Maybe she might even have kissed him back.

Maybe she would kiss him back, hands wrapped around his neck, pushing the baseball cap to the floor. She would get up from the chair— _no, no_. She would pull _HIM_ _down_ onto the chair, and stand between his legs, their lips still locked together. Luke would run a hand through her beautiful curls and she would sink down onto him, straddling him, pulling off her turtleneck as she did so. Her hands would move to unbutton his shirt and he would stop her gently, and ask if this is what she wanted. 

_“Yes,”_ she would have said, without hesitation, _“I want you, Luke.”_ Then they would be kissing again and no holds would be barred. To hell with the windows and the health codes and the nephew upstairs. He would take her, right then and there.

She would rip his shirt off and he would attack her neck, kissing hungrily at her soft ivory skin. She would moan his name and unzip her jeans with one hand and hold him closer with the other and then she would whisper how good it felt in his ear as Luke would reach down between their bodies and groan with anticipation as he felt her, wet and ready and moaning his name and—

The sudsy water splashed up from the sink, dowsing Luke’s midsection. 

“ _AHhhgh_ ,” he chattered, the water (which had run from warm to pure ice during his mental relapse) soaking into his shirt. It worked as effectively as a cold shower in dispelling his.. unwanted thoughts. 

Luke peeled the soaked fabric away from his now freezing skin, and looked down. Thankfully, it _had_ been as effective as a cold shower. He growled and rubbed at his eyes with one hand. 

He yelled at Caesar that he was taking his break now and climbed upstairs to his apartment, thoroughly worn out and utterly disgusted with himself.

As he climbed the stairs, he kicked himself _over and over again_ for being so _stupid_. 

_You don’t think about someone like that!_ He thought to himself, _Even if they are one of the sexiest women in the world without trying, you don’t do that! You don’t objectify them! Lorelai is more than a toy for a sick sex fantasy!_

He paused and his frown deepened. _I KNOW THAT,_ he thought back, insulted on her behalf, _and she IS MORE than that! She’s.. she’s my best friend!_

_Which is even more reason why you shouldn’t be thinking about what she would look like during an orgasm,_ the first voice thought back snidely, the barbed words sparking a painful reaction of guilt and shame and frustration all boiling together in his stomach. 

_God, where had he gone wrong? Lorelai was.. she was Lorelai!_ _He shouldn't be thinking about her like this; it wasn’t right._

_It was her fault for looking at you like that,_ another part whispered in the back of his brain, quiet and tinged with smug satisfaction, _like she was about to give you a lap dance._

Luke growled and smacked himself on the forehead. _This was supposed to be him NOT thinking about her like that, dammit! She deserved better!_ He shouldered his self-hatred and kept trudging up the stairs.

Usually he didn’t think about her like this. Usually he just thought about... little things. Early-morning smiles and kisses over coffee. Snow angels and hot air balloons. Chuppahs and long looks and picnic lunches with just the two of them. 

He would think about warm feeling he got when she smiled, how sometimes it seemed like she would smile just for him. She would smile at him, and the sun would keep shining and the birds would sing and Luke didn’t hate himself for once in his life, and everything would be alright because she was smiling, just for him. And nothing could be wrong with the world when she smiled like that.

Usually he was better at keeping the more.. _primordial_ part of those flickering images out of his conscious mind. He usually urged himself to bury his urges deep in his psyche, along with that rusty old hatchet he kept, the one from all his failed relationships of the past. It didn’t matter anyway. Wasn’t like he would move on from her anytime soon. 

With Lorelai, he was stuck, you see. Luke couldn’t bring himself to ask her out, for fear of rejection and losing the one thing that made his life bearable, and he couldn’t move on because… well, she was the one thing that made his life bearable. 

He sighed. He was _really_ pathetic today. He shook out his head, and took the last few stairs two at a time.

Luke collapsed onto the bed and, without even taking his shoes off, allowed himself to drift off into a deep, dreamless sleep. He had to be alert the rest of the day. He had to keep his mind off those.. unwanted thoughts. 

So he slept, and less than two hours later, he got up again, his neck stiff from the awkward sleeping position. Corduroy lines for the unmade sheets were etched into his stormcloud-expression, and when he went back to the diner, no one commented on it. 

By the time 7:30 rolled around, Luke felt less irritable. He shook out his hands and cracked his stiff neck. He made the girls some burgers in a to-go bag, along with some brownies, and left the diner early. He hoped he could keep the thoughts of that morning out of his head long enough to enjoy himself. 

Taking a deep breath, Luke steeled himself (though he didn’t know why he had reason to be nervous) and knocked on the door to Lorelai Gilmore’s house.


	5. Arrivals and Absences

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke arrives for Movie night and Rory calls in, cancelling her part in the escapade. Mostly just banter and witty conversation.

As soon as she heard the knock, Lorelai bounded to the door. She knew it was silly, but she hadn’t been able to stop thinking about Luke since she left the diner that morning. 

Her memory was hazy from sleep deprivation and caffeine detox (the machine at home was still being neglected), but she was pretty sure there had been some.. _chemistry_ between them. _A vibe_ , as Luke would never say.

When she pulled open the door to find the man himself waiting on the other side, a to-go bag that smelled like deep-fried heaven clutched in one hand, Lorelai nearly threw her arms around him right then and there.

She restrained herself.

Barely.

Instead, she grabbed his collar and pulled him inside with an exuberant squeal. “ _Ahhhhyou’re really here!!_ You’re not a mirage!”

“Of course I’m here,” Luke said gruffly, “I said I would be, didn’t I?”

He stopped and looked at her quizzically. “What do you mean ‘not a mirage’?”

“ _Gee, whatta time for a mira-gee_ ,” Lorelai said in her very best Bugs Bunny impression. Seeing the confused look on his face she explained, saying, “I’m just glad you’re here.”

“I can see that,” he said, one eyebrow raised.

She giggled and tucked a stray hair behind her ear, feeling remarkably like a schoolgirl again. Luke pressed his lips together, trying not to smile. Lorelai clapped her hands and bounced up and down excitedly.

“Ahahhah, we have SO many movies picked out for tonight, of all different genres, y’know, just in case. So many options; I bet you’ll hate all of them and end up ranting about how all the actors probably died from drug overdose before age 26 but end up loving the movie for some obscure reason and AHH I’M SO EXCITED!!”

Luke chuckled incredulously at her as she practically skipped to the sofa. “How much coffee did you chug before I got here?” He asked, eyeing her with a disgusted and.. almost... _adoring_ look. 

“Oh, surprisingly not that much, actually,” she chirped, “You see, the coffee machine decided to stop obeying me and revolted, NOT magically spawning coffee beans so I wouldn’t have to run to the store, and utterly betraying me. OH I am so devastated, Luke, you have no idea.”

“Clearly,” he said with an assessing glance. 

Lorelai kept babbling, hopping from one foot to the other, shaking out excess energy through her wildly gesturing hands.

“Anyway, so, to combat the TRAGIC loss of coffee, I ran to Doose’s to stock up on the regular Movie Night snacks— but then HE HAD A SALE. HE HAD A SALE, LUKE.”

She poked him, making sure he got the point, he swatted her away and crossed his arms, watching her with an almost impressed look on his face.

“SO— I was feeling a little tired, and, because, it is _SO In-CREDIBLY rude_ to doze off on Movie Night, I choked down four Ding Dongs, three Mountain Dews, one of those weird packaged cookies, and somewhere between 3 and 8 packages of Sweet Tarts.”

She grinned expectantly at Luke, eagerly awaiting his reaction. She was hoping for a rant, but was still satisfied with an incredulous glare and an eye roll.

“Heart doctors are gonna make a fortune off of you,” he muttered as he sat down on the couch.

“All the more reason for them to keep me healthy,” Lorelai reasoned, her words overlapping in her haste to get them out, “Don’t wanna kill the golden goose, now do they?”

He was probably about to respond with some really good waterfowl-related dig, when the phone rang. Lorelai sashayed her way over to it, humming an off-key version of ‘Jump in the Line’. 

“Gilmore residence, resident Gilmore speaking.”

“If you’re the residing Gilmore, what does that make me?” A smiling voice asked.

“My lovely daughter and heir to the throne, obviously,” Lorelai answered without moment’s hesitation.

“ _Obviously_ ,” Rory answered in a posh British accent.

“ _But, my adored offspring, whyever have you forsaken thine mother in her time of need? The televised film presentation is about to commence,_ ” Lorelai responded, echoing Rory’s attempted voice. 

She heard Luke snort and caught him shaking his head at their antics. She stuck her tongue out at him and turned away again before he could retaliate.

“Actually Mom,” Rory said, dropping the silly voice and sounded a little hesitant, “I was kinda.. calling to cancel.”

“What?”

“Yeah, um, the thing is, Lane just scored three new CDs that LOOK like they’re Ms Kim-approved, but are actually Modest Mouse. Sooo…..”

“...you’re gonna spend the whole night ranking them and thinking god ways to smuggle them into school,” Lorelai surmised with a knowing grin.

“Pretty much,” Rory affirmed guiltily, “Is that okay? I know you were really looking forward to tonight.”

“ _Nonono_ , it’s fine! Go have your fun!”

“Really?”

“Really really,” Lorelai answered, grinning at the receiver, “Call if you need to be picked up!”

“I’ll probably just walk home.. this... might take awhile.”

“Whatever,” she shrugged. “Have a good time!”

“You too! Say hi to Luke for me!”

“Will do,” Lorelai said. She heard a click, and put down the phone. Sighing, she walked back over to Luke and plopped down on the couch.

“So, it looks like it’s just you and me tonight, buddy.”

Luke swallowed and looked almost uncomfortable for a second. He shifted in his seat a bit, and looked to be gearing up to say something.

“Um, is that, uh, okay with you?” She asked before he could say anything.

“What? Uh, yeah! ‘Course it is,” he said, nodded emphatically.

“Just.. uh..,” Luke added after a quick pause, “Where IS Rory? Is she.. uh, coming home tonight?”

“She’s with Lane,” Lorelai explained, “they found some new CDs that need to be meticulously scrutinized. They might be able to pass her Mom’s muster, if it all goes well! And.. I dunno. Maybe? She might just spend the night there; all depends on how trashy or classy the CDs end up being.”

Luke nodded again, slower this time. He seemed to be processing. Lorelai wished she could see inside his mind, find out what he was thinking. That man’s expression was like Fort Know. He cleared his throat.

“So, uh, what are we watching?” He asked casually.

A huge grin spread across her face. “ _Ohhhh_ this is where the fun begins,” she drawled, her eyes lighting up gleefully. He groaned as she warned him to prepare himself for the best Movie Night of his life.

It looked like it was going to be just that. For her, at least. She wasn’t sure if Luke felt the same way.

But, one could hope.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Sorry I didn’t post yesterday— hoping to make it up to y’all by posting twice today! So lets see how that goes huh :)


	6. Remind me again, Why am I doing this?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The start of movie night, with lots of fluff. Lorelai annoys Luke and Luke gives in, like he always does. And when he does, he’s rewarded with her smile, which is all he really wanted in the first place.

Luke wasn't sure if his stomach was in the proper place. He was pretty sure it was, but, then again, not completely. Usually he (and his internal organs) were unflappable. But that night was proving to be an exception.

His stomach, for example, had been twisted up in knots as he had waited for Lorelai to answer the door. It couldn't have been more than ninety seconds that he had waited, but that was enough for his imagination to run wild through the night. His knotted stomach had dropped down to his toes when he imagined why she might not answer the door.

Then she _did_ answer the door, and suddenly his heart was pounding out of his chest. Usually it didn’t do that, he was pretty sure. 

But usually Lorelai didn’t squeal with joy when she saw him. Usually she didn’t smile like it was Christmas morning, just because he showed up on her doorstep. And she definitely did not usually pull him into her house by his collar, causing his already pounding heart to leap to his throat and make him rethink everything about their friendship (and not in a bad way). Usually.

And his lungs also, usually, did NOT stop functioning because Lorelai was putting in a romantic movie for the Movie Night. With them alone. Rory at Lane’s. Just her and Luke. Watching a movie about people falling in love. Romance. Just the two of them.

Actually, it was kind of no wonder that he couldn’t breathe right. 

Lorelai had (god only knows how) pressured him into watching a film that made Luke want to throw up, just by the trailer. They were watching Pride and Prejudice. _Yup_. _Cue laugh track._

“Remind me again why we’re watching this?” He asked, glaring at the screen as the pre-movie credits started. 

“BECAUSE,” Lorelai said, sitting back down next to him, “You’ve never seen it and I need you to get my Mr Darcy references. Mr Darcy is sexy as hell, and I need you to _understand_ that, Luke.”

“Oh, I’m sure he’s quite a catch,” Luke said, rolling his eyes. 

He made a mental note to pay attention to that particular actor. No reason not to. Not like he was.. not like it meant anything to him.

“Plus, you agreed to this!” Lorelai pointed out, wrongly.

He laughed incredulously. “Are you kidding?” He scoffed, “You browbeat me into this! I wouldn’t be caught DEAD near this kind of movie if I wasn’t—” He stopped himself.

Lorelai looked at him curiously. “What? If you were what?”

Luke tried to swallow discreetly. He had been about to say ‘ _if I wasn’t whipped like fluffy, artery-clogging cream for you, you crazy woman_ ’. Or something along those lines, anyway. 

Instead, he just answered: “If I wasn’t dead tired and about to pass out, thanks for asking,” with a sidelong glare that (he hoped) would deflect all further inquiries.

It worked.

She laughed, and replied, “Well lucky me that a lack of sleep makes you such an AGREEABLE houseguest!”

Suddenly, with a quick “OOH!”, Lorelai jumped up and raced out of the room, once again excited and full of energy. Luke sighed, pausing the movie before any important scenes could pass them by. 

“And I know a way,” he heard Lorelai say from the kitchen, “how to make you _even more_ agreeable!” 

She came back a few seconds later, a beer in each hand. “And me,” she added, “I’ll be drinking too, so I’ll hopefully be affected as well.”

“ _If_ your sugar rush has run its course by then,” Luke said with a look that suggested the idea was dubious.

Lorelai just grinned and passed him a beer. He took it gratefully. With any luck, there would be more to follow. Maybe then he could actually stomach Jane Austen. He unpaused the movie, deciding to just get it over with.

She sat down by him, leaning into Luke’s side, her legs curled up underneath her. Luke would have balked at the contact, savoring every little fleeting touch and tremble of her skin against his, but she was bouncing. Bouncing like a little kid at a birthday party, bouncing so hard she shook the couch. 

Her shoulder was pressed against his, and Luke could feel the jumpy vibrations of her arms, and hear the tip-tapping noise of her fingernails against the beer bottle. It was almost endearing, but after ten seconds, he was sick of it. The lack of sleep made him lose his patience even faster than normal.

“Will you quit it?!” He asked, exasperated.

She jumped a little in her seat, then stilled. “Okay, wow. _Sorry_.” 

Luke grunted and turned his attention to the screen. Cellos swelled and the movie title had just faded off the screen before he felt Lorelai begin to bounce lightly up and down again, jiggling the couch cushions, almost imperceptibly. The subtlety of her quirked lips and sparkling eyes drove him crazy.

“Okay, that’s it,” he growled, and dove forward wrapping his arms around her with a reckless abandon that surprised even him.

He scooped her up in his broad arms with such a quick, fluid movement, that Lorelai barely even had time to breathe in sharply, almost gasping. For a split second, Luke was petrified. 

_What was he doing?_ He didn’t even know. Her breath was warm and smelled like coffee and peppermint. Her eyes were jewels, framed by dark lashes and flushed cheeks. Then, less than a second later, Luke regained the ability to move.

So before Lorelai could realize what was happening, Luke dumped her on the other side of the couch, ignoring her indignant squawk. 

“No more bouncing,” he said sternly, pointing at her for extra emphasis. She just stared at him. Luke thought he heard his heart stop, but it didn’t register.

Then her shocked face broke into one of her dazzling smiles, and everything was normal again.

“Oh _Butch_ ,” Lorelai mocked, her voice shooting up into a high, southern pitch, “You’re _soooo_ strong! My GAWD I’m weak at the knees! _No_ _wondah_ all the girls _swooned_ over you way back when!”

“Jeez..” Luke muttered, regretting everything.

“ _B~u~t~c~h..._ ,” Lorelai sighed dreamily. 

“I could just leave you know!”

She gasped and clapped a hand over her heart. “Oh NO! Ah would never— _I mean NEVER_ — do nothin’ to upset you, Butch! ‘Coz then how will we EVAH go steady?!”

“Can we just watch the movie?” Luke said, his face bright red.

She grinned wickedly at him. “Look at you!” She said, dropping the accent, “I never took Luke Danes to be a Jane Austen fan! Mmhm, Miss Patty will be _very_ interested in that little tidbit!”

He glared at her as she attempted to swallow her smile. She was so beautiful right then, with her face framed by dark curls and her bright blue eyes shining with unshed tears of mirth. The corners of those gemstone eyes were pressed up and fighting to suppress her giant smile. Her face was pink and soft and happier than he had seen it for days. 

She must have noticed his irrational frustration subsiding, giving way to a quiet, gentler emotion, because as soon as the movie started back up again, Lorelai inched her way back over to him on the couch.

By the end of the scene, their shoulders were back to brushing at every little movement, and her leg bounced softly against his. Luke didn’t even complain this time. 

He definitely didn’t complain when, as one last attempt to get Lorelai to sit still, he put a hand on her thigh without thinking. Not only did it work, but she didn’t shy away from his touch. Luke didn’t move again for a good long while, the beginnings of a smile etched around his tired eyes. Maybe this movie wouldn’t be _so bad_ after all.


	7. Dreamlike Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lorelai falls asleep on the couch, cuddled into Luke, not realizing that he wants this as much as her. Unapologetic fluff that will make your eyes water.

Lorelai’s sugar high lasted a little over half an hour. The crash came ten minutes after that. 

“ _Mn_ nhh _ghhm_ mm _hng_ ,” she groaned, her head tilted all the way back.

“ _Shhh_ ,” Luke hissed, “you’re supposed to be quiet when you watch a movie, ya know.”

Lorelai could feel his shoulders shaking with hushed laughter. He was clearly enjoying this. She mustered the energy to glare at him through half-closed eyelids.

“ _Shhhhhhushushush_ ,” she murmured grumpily, the words dripping from her slack mouth like molasses, “you.. are the one whose being loud.. Luke. Too loud, Luke.”

He snorted a laugh. “Oh come _on_ , you’re not even watching the movie anymore!”

“Nuh uh! I am.. still watching.”

“Oh really?” He challenged, “Tell me what’s happening, right now.”

With a monumental effort, Lorelai lifted her head and squinted sleepily at the screen. She had watched Pride and Prejudice many, many times, but her brain was moving sluggishly and the dialogue was proving tricky to decipher.

“Bingley just.. just did the— he did the.. did the thing,” she said, lamely, one hand gesturing vaguely in the general direction of the screen.

“Wow, gold star.”

“Shush—shut up. _SHhhhhhHHh_ …,” Lorelai muttered into the air, her eyes closing again.

Her eyelids weren’t _heavy_ , per say, they just felt _SO GOOD_ closed. Lorelai snapped the open, only to have the lids slowly drift back down again. She groaned loudly, realizing that there was absolutely _no way_ that she was going to make it through the entire movie. So might as well get comfortable.

Lorelai moved even closer to Luke, closing the miniscule distance between them and putting her head on his shoulder. She felt him stiffen, and she thought she felt the vein in his neck move slightly.

“What,” he asked, his voice choked and horse, but clearly trying not to show it, “are you doing?”

“I’ve already seen the movie.. a lot,” Lorelai yawned, “an’.. I’m tired.”

He shifted his weight, and through her closed eyes Lorelai pictured his face. Grumpy and uncomfortable. Contemplating the situation. His jaw would be set just so, his eyebrows lowered over those strikingly stormy blue eyes. He would be thinking, and, if she was being honest, he would look WAY hotter than Mr Darcy.

Lorelai stopped at that thought. Luke.. was attractive. Yes, that was established. But he was also.. he was also her friend. She didn’t want to screw it up. 

_So stop thinking about him like this_ , she told herself, _and stop leaning on his shoulder. He doesn’t think of you like that; you’re making him uncomfortable._ _GOD, you’re such an idiot_.

She pulled away from him, and sat up on her own. She opened her eyes, but didn’t meet his.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “I’m.. I didn’t mean to make you.. sorry. I’m just really tired. You.. you make a good pillow. But I don’t want to make you.. uncomfortable. Sorry. I’ll just…,” she started to lean the other way, but he stopped her with a touch of the hand.

“Lorelai..,” Luke replied, his face staring straight ahead. He sighed, and looking defeated dropped his chin to his chest. 

Then he raised his arms in an inviting gesture, saying, in a soft, caring voice, “C’mere.”

Lorelai smiled sleepily, and leaned in between his arms. When she snuggled in, closer to his neck, face pressed up against his warmth, it was like all tension was let out from her body.. like... like Helium from a balloon. Luke’s arm relaxed around her, and she melted into him.

“So,” he said, conversationally, “I make a good pillow, huh?”

She giggled into his neck, and thought she caught a shiver run through his body. It was probably just her sleep-addled imagination.

“Yeah,” she whispered. “You do.”

He made a non-mittal, “mm,” noise, and she smiled into him.

“Yeah, you’re a good pillow,” she sighed, breathing in the smell of him without realizing it, “You’re warm.. and safe.. and… really good pillow.”

“Glad to hear it,” Luke murmured above her. 

Lorelai’s mind was whirring to a halt. The thoughts were rising and falling like Luke’s heartbeat against her own. _Why could she feel his heartbeat?_ Oh. Her hand was on his chest.

She toyed with the flannel absentmindedly, rolling a fold between her thumb and forefinger with a simple yet exhausting movement. Lorelai could feel Luke’s arm around her, feel the heat and pressure wrapping her up in a lax embrace of flesh and fabric. 

Lorelai probably should feel something about how she shouldn’t be doing this. But all she felt right then was comfort and warmth and safety. She knew that Luke was never.. a cuddly person (and frankly, neither was she), but this felt right, somehow. Normal friends didn’t cuddle on the couch. Right? Had Luke ever been just a ‘ _normal friend’?_

Unconsciously, Lorelai whimpered softly, shifting her weight, suddenly uneasy at the self-aware path her thoughts were taking. 

Luke reached his hand up and cradled the back of her head. His fingers stroked lightly, hesitantly, over her hair, in an almost soothing gesture. Lorelai realized right then, that she didn’t really care what happened later. 

I mean, she would care, but only _then_. Only _after_ would it be awkward, only _after_ might she regret snuggling up to her best friend, ignoring the movie altogether. Right now, she could just enjoy the feeling of holding him, and being held.

Lorelai sighed into his shirt collar, nuzzling gently against his neck. He was so warm; she wanted to get as close to him as possible. The beginnings of his stubble scratched against her face, and she rubbed her cheek against it, reveling in the unfamiliar sensation. Then she stilled, settling into him, letting her breathing synch up with his.

Luke was warm. He was strong. He was warm and strong and smelled like peppermints and syrup and pine trees. He smelled of sweet sweat and wood chips and cooking oil. He smelled like the night sky, comfort, and childhood blankets that you knew you would never throw away. 

Breathing him in, Lorelai soon drifted off into a deep sleep. She grumbled nonsensical murmurs into his collarbone when Luke reached over, switching off the movie. Then she felt his other arm go around her, and she sighed contentedly in her sleep.

In her dream, Lorelai was on the porch swing. She was watching the snowfall, the flakes swirling and glowing in the pale sunlight, reminding her of fireflies, dancing through moonbeams. In her dream, she was old, with gray hair and gnarled, shaking hands. A small golden band winked at her from one finger.

In the dream, Luke, his hair receding and his stubble all but gray, joined her on the porch swing. He brought a warm blanket and a steaming cup of coffee, but wrapped her up in his arms before she could drink it. Her bones cracked and her joints ached, but she laughed and kissed his cheek. Luke looked tired, but radiated a quiet serenity in his bashful smile. 

In her dream, Luke held her on the porch swing, warm and safe and loved, until the snow covered the lawn. 

She whispered, “I love you,” into his frayed army jacket. 

He kissed her head and replied quietly, shakily. “I love you too. And I always have, Lorelai. It was always right in front of ya.”

They just held each other for the rest of the dream, cuddled together on the porch swing, reflecting on all the years of love they had enjoyed with one another. Lorelai smiled in her sleep.

Her eyes were still closed, her mind still wrapped up in a dream, when Luke kissed her hair with a gentle, loving motion, and settled back on the couch. They both fell asleep there, in each other’s arms, and dreamed of never being anywhere but here.


	8. Waking up with Lorelai

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke wakes up to complete and total euphoria. The feeling fades a bit, when he realizes the reality of the situation, but he’s hopeful that this, this time, things will be different.

Luke woke up _a lot_ later than his usual quarter to five, disoriented and distracted by warm breath on his cheek. 

He froze, and resisted the urge to move. _Where was he?_

Someone— _a woman_ — was laying in his chest, one leg curled over his thighs, her hand flat against his side. His hand was tangled up in her dark, gauzy curls.

Then he remembered. _Lorelai_.

She had fallen asleep watching the movie, and he had let her snuggle into him to sleep. A slow smile spread across his face.

So _this_ is what it felt like to wake up with Lorelai Gilmore. 

Luke felt light as a feather, despite her body slung over his chest, which was making it hard for him to breathe. There was no real way to describe the emotion swirling deep in his being. The only thing that came to him were abstract words that sounded idiotic out of context— he would have laughed at himself had he not been emmersed in the best moment he had ever experienced.

She felt like sunbeams. She felt like sunbeams and sweaters and banana pancakes on a Tuesday morning. She smelled like peaches and thick cream, and something raw and delicate that he couldn’t quite place. 

Rays of mid-morning sunshine wormed their way through cracks in the curtains, the warmth washing over the two people on the couch, still wrapped up in each other’s arms.

Luke floated up through a haze of complete and total euphoria, his hand lazily tracing circles into the soft skin of her arm. 

Lorelai stirred slightly, and he froze, terrified that when she woke up, everything would be different. She mumbled something, her face pressed up against his neck. The warm breath tickled his cheek, and he shivered. 

She was saying something, but Luke could only make out a few coherent words. Words like, “snow,” “porch,” and “coffee,” the last one making him grin just a little. 

And then she breathed out one final word into him, and the tone of pure adoration made his heart stop. “Luke…”

She repeated his name over and over again, quiet and sleepy. Her lips moved against his neck, and Luke could almost pretend she was kissing the underside of his jaw. It felt like she was, in a way. Then she sighed happily, and nuzzled further into his neck, burying her face in his shoulder.

Luke couldn’t stop smiling. 

This might just be one of the best moments of his life.

And of course, he had to try and ruin it for himself by overthinking everything.

_ What if she thought everything was different when she woke up? What if it WAS different? Did Lorelai.. did this mean she thought of him as more than a friend? Or was this some kind of super friend-zone, where she was so comfortable with him as a friend, that she didn’t mind snuggling up to him on the couch? _

Luke wanted things to be different, but only if she felt the same way. He wasn’t the kind of guy to push a relationship on someone who didn’t want it. Especially Lorelai. 

He stroked her hair absentmindedly. It was silky, perfect and soft under his touch. Then the reality of the situation started to sink in.

Lorelai was asleep on top of him, on a very narrow couch. It was morning, so she had probably been like that all night. It was morning, so Rory was home. The diner was open. He needed to get to work. _Oh god, what about Jess?_

Jess had known he was going out, but not all the details. _Was he okay? Did he even come home that night?_ Luke didn’t know, but worry was starting to gnaw at his gut.

The kid was his responsibility, and, as much as he wanted to stay, he needed to check up on him. Plus, Luke’s legs were asleep under Lorleai’s weight, and the tingles were starting to become annoyingly painful. 

He rolled her off of him, gently shifting his weight so Lorelai fell back softly onto the cushions. His arms were still under her, and, one hand having mysteriously drifted up the hem of her shirt, Luke could feel the warmth radiating off her smooth skin of her back. He filed the sensation away in the back of his mind before sliding his arms out from under her.

She moaned in discomfort and her eyebrows curved downwards, scrunching up her nose. 

“ _Mnnnnmmmmhhgghh_ ,” she murmured unhappily, hands trying to locate his body in the empty air. 

He chuckled, and brushed some stray hair from her face. She was a mess; dark brown curls bunched at odd angles around her face, makeup smeared lightly around the edges, clothes wrinkled beyond the magic of an iron. She was disheveled and rumpled and Luke thought he had never seen her more beautiful. 

She looked lovely, lying there on the couch, her arms twisted about her head, her hair splayed out in every direction. Her perfectly-shaped lips moved against each other, like she was pouting that he wasn’t there. Luke had the sudden urge to kiss her, right then and there.

But he didn’t. That wasn’t his way. That wasn’t the _right_ _way_ to do this. He had to wait until she woke up to do anything; otherwise he’d feel like a creep. But he also couldn’t stay there— he had Jess and the diner to think about!

Suddenly, a metaphorical lightbulb switched on in Luke’s mind. _He could leave a note! That could work, right?_

Grabbing a pen from the entryway desk (because, contrary to Lorleai’s obstinate belief, he did NOT always carry a pen on him) and a pad of Hello Kitty sticky notes. 

He needed to be brief, but also _mean_ something. After a moment’s deliberation, Luke scribbled down a note.

_ ‘Thanks for inviting me. It was nice. Maybe we can do something a little different next time — Luke’ _

He smiled at it proudly. “ _Something a little different_ ” was vague enough so that she would ask him about it, and then he would have the perfect opener to ask her to dinner. 

Luke hoped she would wake up and come by the diner soon. He had been waiting, and thinking, and biding his time to ask her out for so long, it was a relief to finally make progress. 

And, based on what happened last night, Luke was fairly certain there was at least _a chance_ that she would say yes.

After putting the sticky note on the couch so Lorelai would see it when she woke up, Luke walked to the door as quietly as he could manage, then made his way over to the diner. He didn’t even try to hide the huge, goofy grin on his face. 

After waking up with Lorelai Gilmore practically kissing his neck, Luke felt like he was on top of the world. And _nothing_ could ruin this for him.


	9. Walking up without Luke, but with Worries

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lorelai wakes up happy, but immediately starts overthinking things when she realizes Luke’s gone. She wakes up Rory and the two talk about Lorelai’s feelings for Luke.

Lorelai opened her eyes to find an unfamiliar ceiling staring back at her. Well, not totally unfamiliar, but definitely not the one form her bedroom, she was pretty sure.

She sat up on the couch and brushed the hair out of her face. She choked on her yawn when it hit her. 

Oh my god.  _ Oh my god. _

She had fallen asleep on top of Luke. She had, technically, slept with Luke. Woah. Lorelai ran a hand across her face and fought against a smile. She could still smell him on the cushions; his Luke-ness had imprinted itself of her clothes.

Lorelai fell back on the couch, hugging herself and grinning like an idiot. Did this mean he liked more as more than a friend? Maybe he would even ask her out! Her heart soared at the possibility. 

Her hopes surged along with it when she spotted a sticky note on the couch, with Luke’s unmistakable sideways scrawl. She read it once, then read it again.

_ ‘Thanks for inviting me. It was nice. Maybe we can do something a little different next time. — Luke’ _

Lorelai tilted her head at the scrap of paper, debating what he meant. Ugh, she hated when people left her super brief messages. It always felt like she had to decode them and search for clues.

_“Thanks for inviting me”_ was pretty straightforward. He was being polite and thanking her for the Movie Night. But _‘inviting me’_.. did that mean if she wanted to do this again, SHE had to be the one to invite HIM? Maybe it meant he wanted HER to dictate what came next in their relationship, before he revealed what HE wanted.

_“It was nice.”_ Generic compliment. Did that mean it was just _“nice”_ to him? Because to Lorelai, sleeping next to him had felt pretty frickin’ phenomenal. Maybe it was a clue that he wasn’t as hung up on it as she was… Or maybe he was saying he had liked it? Maybe.

_“Maybe we can do something a little different next time”_ was the kicker.

_“Next time”_ implied that there would BE a next time, like Luke had enjoyed himself enough to  _ want  _ a next time. That was good. But… _“something a little different”_ made Lorelai pause, her heart jumping in her chest in an involuntarily fight/flight reaction. 

Something a little different to her meant not what they did last night. And last night had been, to her at least, pretty perfect. Did.. did that mean Luke didn’t think it was perfect? Oh god, now that she thought about it, he was probably super uncomfortable the whole time! He had wanted to watch a movie, not get cozy with some woman on a massive sugar-crash! 

Lorelai’s good mood shriveled inside her when she thought of the implications. 

_ What if he was disgusted by her? What if he had hated last night, or.. OR what if he hadn’t even stayed?  _ That would explain the need for a note! Luke probably left as soon as she fell asleep. She had manipulated him into letting her sleep on his shoulder without even realizing it! He was too nice to say no!!

Okay, this was bad. This was REALLY bad. Now Lorelai was rethinking everything about last night. If Luke really hadn’t wanted her to sleep on top of him, he would have said something right? Then she remembered: he DID say something. He had asked her what she was doing, in that stiff, choked voice he used when he was trying to contain his emotions. Usually anger. Oh god, was he mad at her?

Lorelai needed to sort this out. She needed to talk with him. Plus, he had coffee, which sounded really REALLY good right about now.

She woke Rory up gently, telling her she was heading Luke’s, and hesitated when the sleepy girl asked to wait up, that she wanted to tag along. Rory, brushing sleep out of her eyes, noticed Lorelai’s hesitation and tilted her head at her.

“Mom, is everything okay? Are you and Luke in a fight?”

“What? No!” Lorelai yelped, distracted and accidentally catching her finger in the heel of her shoe as she pulled it on, “No, Luke and I are.. fine, we’re fine. Everything’s fine. What, did he say something to you?”

Rory narrowed her eyes at the older woman. “No… but he was here when I got home last night.” A cheeky smile spread across the young girl’s face. “You two looked pretty cozy, so I didn’t wake you.”

“Aaaahhh,” Lorelai groaned, covering her blushing face with her hands, “I’m so embarrassed about that!! Like, how do you react after sleeping on top of someone?”

“Dirty,” Rory added.

“Yeah, but not just that! I mean, is it just a coinkydink, or dya think this is yet another foreshadowing thing, like a When Harry Met Sally situation?”

“I dunno,” she answered, narrowing her eyes, “Do you WANT it to be a When Harry Met Sally situation?”

Lorelai spluttered, realizing her mistake in the mini-rant. “I— I don’t know. I mean, maybe? But this is Luke we’re talking about.  _ Luke _ .”

“Yes,  _ Luke _ ,” Rory said calmly, looking at her mother with an amused glance, “the guy who’s had a thing for you for like six years and counting. Luke. The guy who would literally do ANYTHING for you! Yeah, I know you’re ‘just friends’, but I don’t think that discounts the opportunity for more.”

Lorelai blushed and nodded, wondering when her little girl had gotten so grown up. “Yeah, I— I guess.” 

She waved a hand, dismissing the topic quickly. “We’ll just see how it goes. Play it by ear,  _ roll with the stones _ , eh, Angie?”

Rory grinned, the reference not lost one her. “Hold your Wild Horses there, or else you won’t get no satisfaction!”

Lorelai pantomimed a poorly-done air guitar before bounding out of the room, humming a mismatched mixing pot of all the songs they had just referenced. 

Rory rolled out of bed and pulled on some clothes, shaking her head at her mother’s cluelessness. At least she was finally getting there, noticing Luke as more than a friend. She wondered absentmindedly who would win the betting pool. Quickly pulling on her socks and shoes, Rory met her mom at the door, and they walked arm in arm to Luke’s talking a mile a minute about whatever came to mind. 

Rory graciously refrained from remarking on Lorelai’s nicer than usual outfit of a cute blouse, light sweater, and very tight jeans. She smiled. It was about time Lorelai opened her eyes, and saw what was right in front of her


	10. Strike One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke returns to the diner and talks with Jess, Lorelai, and the Troubadour. fun and fluff and internalized debates. Bit longer than normal; mostly dialogue. Next chapter will also probably be Luke’s POV btw, I’m not done with him yet ;)

Luke got back to the diner and managed to wipe the grin off his face before anyone got suspicious. He knew he wasn’t  _ usually  _ smiling, but today felt like a celebration. 

So he swallowed the smile and replaced it with a half-hearted scowl as he made his way to the diner door. It was unlocked. Jess must have forgotten to lock it when he got home. IF he got home. Worry twisted itself in his gut, but was quickly dispelled when he entered the diner to find the boy exiting the stairs, his hair already gelled up for the day.

“Where’ve you been?” Jess asked, starting to flip over chairs and get the Inter ready to open. Luke grimaced. He really had woken up late. 

“Did you leave the door unlocked all night?” Luke deflected, watching the boy carefully.

“No,” he said, turning away. Luke sighed.

“Jess.. you can’t leave the diner unlocked at night! That’s unsafe! What if somebody had broken in?”

“Oh my bad, I guess I just forgot to worry about the mean streets of Stars Hollow. I heard Kirk broke a doorknob with his foot yesterday trying to prove he didn’t need help carrying groceries, then cried on his doorstep saying ‘what have I done’. Yeah, real scary stuff.”

Luke shook his head and started flipping over chairs. He worked quickly, making up for lost time. ‘Lost time.’ He smiled to himself. The  _ one time _ he slept in and had zero regrets.

“What’re you smiling about?”

Luke’s happy expression slid off his face when he remembered he wasn’t alone. He gave Jess a look and said, sternly, “None of your business.”

“Does it have anything to do with where you are all night?”

Luke didn’t answer, which apparently was answer enough for Jess, who gave him a sneer. “Were you out with a…  _ lady friend? _ ”

“Jess!” Luke exclaimed, feeling his face heating up.

“It would explain why you’re grinning like Dopey the Clown. I guess getting laid makes you Mr. Sunshine for the next few hours, huh?”

Luke had no trouble forming a scowl this time. “Shut up,” he growled dangerously, his face burning. He could never tell him that he was at Lorelai’s. He knew he would never hear the end of it if word got out.

Jess held up his hands in an innocent gesture, raising his eyebrows at Luke. “Hey, it’s all cool! Just let me know before you bring her over here so I can still have a childhood. Leave a note next time, or at least hang a sock on the door.”

Luke slammed the chair down hard, his face beet red. “JESS!”

“Oh wow, would you look at the time,” Jess said evasively, glancing at his watch-less arm. “Gotta get to school. See ya, Uncle Luke.”

“It’s LUKE. Just, LUKE!” He barked after him. 

Jess slipped out of the diner without his books, without a backpack, but WITH a pointed smirk that made Luke dig his fingers into the chair until they hurt. He took a deep breath, and tried to get his face to return to its normal color.

He realized it wasn’t even NEAR time for school. After taking a long-winded sigh, he let it go. Running after Jess would just encourage him. With a pang of regret, Luke realized it would still be hours and hours before Lorelai came in, if she came in at all. Maybe he had been too hasty in leaving. 

Luke contented himself to remembering what it felt like to have her in his arms, to hold her close and feel her warm body pressed against his. He then avoided similar thoughts until customers started trickling in, so that his face wouldn’t get flushed again. No need to embarrass himself this early in the morning. 

Hours later, he was still failing at not thinking about her. He busied himself behind the counter, snapping his head up every time the bells rang, just in case it might be that brunette woman who had captured his heart. 

Eventually, it happened, and Lorelai Gilmore breezed into the diner with Rory in tow, and Luke’s heart felt like it was being set on fire.

He stomped out the metaphorical flames as the two sat down and he walked over ( _ not too fast NOT TOO FAST _ ) to ( _ CASUALLY _ ) take their orders.

“What can I getcha?” Luke asked, purposefully looking down at his notepad and NOT at her.

“Oh! Hi,” Lorelai said with a start, looking suprised to see him. 

“Hi,” he said back, with a tentative grin before clearing his throat. “So, uh, what movie did we watch again last night? I can’t really remember.”

She scoffed and smacked his chest. Luke ignored the flurry of sparks he felt at her touch. “Ugh, it was a CLASSIC! How could you forget?!”

“You always say that. About  _ every  _ movie.”

“Yeah, but I only mean it with a few,” Lorelai responded, grinning first at him, then turning to Rory, who was watching the two adults with an amused expression. “ _ We _ watched Pride and Prejudice last night.”

“The 1995 version? With Jennifer Ehle?”

“Uh, duh! That’s the only version I’ll accept! Colin Firth and her have some SERIOUS chemistry, and it MAKES the film!”

“Really?” Luke said, with a suppressed smile and knowing glance, “Maybe we didn’t get to that part before you fell asleep.”

Lorelai reddened and spluttered a response before Rory interjected, fixing her mother with an appalled look. “MOM! How could you?! And during a CLASSIC, no less.”

Lorelai shrugged defensively, claiming that she hadn’t slept the night before last, that she had eaten her weight in sugar (which was true), that she had run 10 miles (which was not) and couldn’t be blamed for falling asleep on the couch. Luke watched her over-enthusiastic explanation with a bemused look on his face, enjoying her rant. 

When she paused for breath, Luke saw an opening, and took the plunge. He just went for it.

“Well, maybe, if you’re, uh, not so tired tomorrow, OR SOME OTHER TIME, we… you and I, could.. uh...,” he stammered, suddenly feeling off balance, not quite making eye contact anymore. 

From what he did see Lorelai was looking at him with her bright blue eyes opened wide, her face almost… glad? Wishful thinking, probably. Luke cursed himself for not being more articulate as he flubbed his way through an ask-out.

“We.. um, if-if you want to we could maybe… go ou—”

Just then, a guy with rock-star hair and a guitar slung over his left shoulder (the town Troubadour, if Luke wasn’t mistaken) burst into the diner with a huge grin on his face.

“ATTENTION EVERYONE,” he said loudly, catching the attention of the packed diner, “I HAVE AN ANNOUNCEMENT!”

Luke felt a familiar blunt pain in his stomach at being interrupted before his and Lorelai’s relationship could progress. He focused the anger and frustration on the Troubadour. 

“Hey, buddy, that’s the doorway, not a podium. Ya got somethin’ to say, bring it up at the next town meeting.” Luke hoped the guy would just go away. Maybe then he could actually form the words ‘would you like to have dinner with me?’

The guy just laughed, saying, “Don’t worry, I won’t take long. I just wanted everybody to know that as of tomorrow, I will be IN HOLLYWOOD!”

Silence. Lorelai clapped and let out an over-enthusiastic “woot woot!” which Rory echoed. Luke scowled, wondering why he should care. The guy answered that for him.

“So, because there won’t be a Troubadour for the next few months while I’m working on the set of Phantom of the Opera, I know it’s spur of the moment, but I’ll be hosting a miniature festival in the town square at sundown! Come if you can, I’ll be performing for as long as we can stay awake!”

The diner erupted into frenzied conversation as the town troubadour turned on his heel and strutted out the door, looking entirely too pleased with himself. Luke’s shoulders sagged. The moment had passed, like it always did. At least he still had a chance though. He turned back to Lorelai only to find her excitedly jabbering about the festival with Rory.

“Omigosh, I can’t believe the Troubadour got that big a break!! Lucky, lucky, lucky!”

“Well,” the young girl said reasonably, “It might not be TOO lucky. He didn’t say what part he had gotten.”

Lorelai raised her eyebrows, considering. “I guess that’s true. Huh. Too bad. I would pay good money to see that man in a cape.”

“Or any man, as long as they have good hair,” Rory said, giggling.

“I have taught you well, young Padawan.”

“Are you gonna order anything?” Luke asked, somewhat exasperated.

“I’ll order you to not interrupt our conversation, thank you very much,” Lorelai said in a pretend-haughty tone. 

Luke glared at her with no real conviction. “I’ll come back when I have time for this,” he growled, putting away the notepad and walking away.

Lorelai squawked. “No! Uh, quick, Rory, order everything you can think of while we still can!”

The girl jumped in her seat and hummed all panicky. “Um, um, um,  _ pancakeswithscrambledeggsandlotsandlotsofwhippedcream!!” _

“Ooh! And coffee, don’t forget the coffee!”

“All the coffee, buckets of coffee! Cry me a river of coffee!”

“Got that, burger boy?” Lorleai shouted after him as he walked away.

“I stopped listening after I left the table,” he shouted back, reveling in the sounds of their disgruntled gasps. 

He scribbled down their order discreetly, taking care not to show his smile as he did so. Even though the first attempt didn’t go well, Luke was hopeful that the Gilmore Girls’ conversation would pause again, and he would get another chance to ask out the woman of his dreams. But until then, things seemed to be turning out okay after all.


End file.
